JP2003244380A - Photographic print creation system and photographic processor used for the same system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a photographic print creation system capable of suppressing lowering of throughput of a photographic processor. <P>SOLUTION: The photographic print creation system is constituted by connecting the photographic processor 1 with an image data acquisition device 3 that acquires pieces of image data except various BMPs (bit maps) from a recording medium by a network 4 by using image data of bit map (BMP), by providing a first memory part that temporarily stores image data when image data fetching the image data stored in the image data acquisition part 3 is except BMP, an image data conversion means 11d that converts the image data into the BMP, a second memory part provided for a conversion processing and a hard disk 15 that stores the image data so that the image data of the BMP can be read from the head disk 15 when a print processing is performed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a photographic print creation system for connecting a photographic processing device and a computer via a network or the like, and using the data created by the computer to create a photographic print by the photographic processing device. The present invention relates to a photo processing device used in a system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The basic function of a digital photographic processing apparatus, which has become widespread in recent years, is to read an image from a developed photographic film (negative film or positive film) with a scanner, convert it into digital data, An image is printed and exposed on a photographic light-sensitive material using digital image data to create a photographic print. An exposure engine is also provided for printing and exposing the image. In this way, a photographic print can be created using the image data. Further, as an image forming medium, not only photographic film but also various recording media (CD-R, MO, storage media for digital cameras, etc.) can be used to obtain image data and similarly make a photographic print. it can.

An image data acquisition device is provided as a device for acquiring image data from various recording media. Various recording media can be attached to the image data acquisition device, and image data in various image file formats can be acquired. Here, the photographic processing device and the image data acquisition device are connected by a network technology, and when a photographic print is to be created using the image data acquired by the image data acquisition device, the photographic processing device sends the image over the network. Capture data. The captured image data is stored in a mass storage device such as a hard disk.

[0004]

There are various image file formats, but in order to print and expose an image on a photographic light-sensitive material in a photographic processing apparatus, the image file format is a bit map (first Image file format). On the other hand, there are various image file formats of the image data acquired by the image data acquisition device, and examples thereof include JPEG, TIFF, GIF and the like (these correspond to the second image file format). These second image file formats need to be converted to the first image file format for print processing.

Therefore, when the image data to be printed is not a bitmap, the following processing is generally performed. That is, (1) the image data acquired from the image data acquisition device is temporarily stored in the first area of the hard disk, (2) the image data is read from the hard disk, and (3) the image data is in the second image file format. In this case, the image data is converted into the first image file format by the image conversion process,
(4) The image data of the first image file format is stored in the second area of the hard disk, and (5) when the print processing is performed, the image data of the first image file format is read from the hard disk and the image processing is performed. Transfer to board.
After that, the image data that has undergone the image processing is transferred to the exposure engine, and scanning exposure is performed using known image data.

As can be seen from the above, the access (reading / writing) to the hard disk is performed four times as in the above (1), (2), (4) and (5).
As described above, when the number of accesses to the hard disk is large, the print processing capability of the photo processing device is reduced. Furthermore, just before the print processing is about to begin,
Since the image conversion process is being performed, the processing capability was to be further reduced. This needs to be improved if the photographic processor needs to process a large number of orders over the network.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to reduce the number of accesses to a hard disk and prevent a reduction in the processing capacity of a photographic processing device when converting an image file format. (EN) Provided is a photographic print producing system capable of performing the above, and a photographic processing device used in this system.

In order to solve the above problems, a photographic print creating system according to the present invention uses an image data of a first image file format to print an image on a photographic light-sensitive material to expose a photographic image. A photographic processing device for creating a print, an image data acquisition device for acquiring image data of various image file formats from a recording medium, and a photographic print creation system in which the photographic processing device and the image data acquisition device are connected by a network or the like. And a data capturing means for capturing the image data stored in the image data acquisition device, and a memory for temporarily storing the image data when the captured image data is in the second image file format. Image data conversion means for converting the image data in the memory into a first image file format, and a first image file A hard disk for storing image data converted into a formula is provided, and when performing print processing, the image data of the first image file format can be read from the hard disk. . The operation and effect of the photographic print creating system with this configuration are as follows. First, the photo processing device and the image data acquisition device are connected by a network or the like. When connecting by network,
The numbers of photo processing devices and image data acquisition devices are not particularly limited. Also, other computers may be connected to the network.

First, the photo processing device takes in the image data stored in the image data acquisition device. When the image file format of the captured image data is the second image file format, this is temporarily stored in the memory. Then, the second image file format is converted into the first image file format (preferably a bitmap) based on the function of the image data conversion means. Here, the image data conversion means may be configured by software, or may be configured by hardware or an appropriate combination of software and hardware. The image data converted into the second image file format is stored in the hard disk. Then, when the print processing is performed, the image data in the first image file format is read from the hard disk.

When the captured image data is in the first image file format, it is preferable to save it directly on the hard disk. Thereby, the processing time can be shortened. In this case, the image conversion process is not performed. Of course, even in the case of the first image file format, the configuration may be such that it is temporarily stored in the memory.

According to the above-mentioned configuration, the hard disk can be accessed only twice when writing the image data of the first image file format and when reading the image data for print processing, so the number of accesses is minimized. You can keep it to the limit. Also, after reading from the hard disk,
The conversion process to the first image file format is not performed. Also, comparing the access time to the hard disk with the access time to the memory, the memory is considerably faster. As a result, it is possible to provide a photographic print creating system capable of reducing the number of accesses to the hard disk and suppressing the reduction in the processing capability of the photographic processing device when converting the image file format.

A photographic processing device used in the photographic print creating system according to the present invention comprises a data capturing means for capturing the image data stored in the image data acquiring device,
A memory for temporarily storing the captured image data when the captured image data is in the second image file format;
An image data conversion unit for converting the image data in the memory into a first image file format, and a hard disk for storing the image data converted into the first image file format are provided, and when performing print processing, The image data of the first image file format can be read from the hard disk.
The operation and effect of this configuration are as described above.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A preferred embodiment of a photographic print creating system according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Figure 1
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of a photographic print creating system installed in a photo shop or the like.

<Photographic Print Making System> This system is constructed by connecting a photoprocessing device 1, a plurality of personal computers 2 and an image data acquisition device 3 via a network 4. The photo processing device 1 and the image data acquisition device 3
In FIG. 1, only one unit is shown, but a plurality of units may be connected. Further, the number of connected personal computers 2 is not limited. Network 4
It is, for example, is constructed with LAN by Ethernet ^TM,
Network devices are connected via the hub 4a. Of course, it may be a network other than Ethernet ^TM.

The photographic processing apparatus 1 uses the image data to print an image on a photographic light-sensitive material such as photographic paper to expose it to produce a photographic print. The photo processing apparatus 1 can set at least a first print mode and a second print mode. In the first print mode, the image of the developed negative film can be read by the scanner device 5, converted into digital data, and a photographic print can be created using the digital image data. In the second print mode, a photographic print can be created by using the image data transmitted via the network.

The personal computer 2 can handle not only image data but also various data other than image data (this is referred to as non-image data). For example, there are document data created by word processing software, graph / table data created by spreadsheet software, and presentation data. There is also data in which a document and an image are combined, but this is also called non-image data. There is a demand to obtain these non-image data as photographic prints instead of ordinary prints (prints printed on paper by an inkjet printer, a laser printer, etc.). Therefore, in this system, a system is constructed so that photographic prints can be created using non-image data other than image data. Therefore, a printer driver is installed in each personal computer 2 connected to the network 4, and non-image data can be converted into image data (details will be described later).

The image data acquisition device 3 can acquire image data from various recording media. Examples of this recording medium include CD-R, MO, storage media for digital cameras (smart media, compact flash).
^TM , Memory Stick, etc.) and the like. Further, the image data is acquired in a predetermined image file format, for example, bitmap, JPEG, TIFF, GIF or the like.

The flow of processing in the photo shop will be briefly described. At the counter 6 of the photo shop, the customer receives an order for making a photo print. When an order is received, a copy of the order is given to the customer. Here, when the non-image data file is received from the customer, the recording medium (for example, a flexible disk) storing the file is set in the personal computer, and the non-image file is taken into the personal computer. Then, the printer driver sets various items for print processing, converts non-image data into image data, and transmits the image data to the photographic processing apparatus 1 via the network. The photographic processing device 1 creates a photographic print using the received converted image data. If the finished photographic print is inspected and the image quality is OK,
When the customer comes to the photo shop to receive the photo print, the photo print is handed over, and the photo shop receives the print price. If there is a problem in image quality, the image is corrected by the personal computer 2 and the print process is performed again. The same applies when a photo print is created by depositing a file of image data from a customer.

<Block Diagram of System> Next, FIG.
The functional block configuration of the photographic print creating system shown in FIG. 2 will be described with reference to FIG. It should be noted that the functions shown here show only parts necessary for explaining the configuration of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 2, the photo processing apparatus 1 (printer processor) has a net order unit 10 for managing order information transmitted via the network 4.
And a net folder section 11 is provided as a part of the function of the net order section 10. The net order unit 10 and the net folder unit 11 can be constructed by installing a program in a computer provided inside the photo processing apparatus 1. This program is usually stored in the hard disk, and the program data is stored in the memory when working.

The data receiving means 10a receives the image data to be printed, which is transmitted via the network, on an order-by-order basis. The data management means 10b manages the image data received by the data reception means 10a on an order-by-order basis. For example, the order in which print processing should be performed, incidental data (print size, number of prints,
Quality, etc.). The order change unit 10c can change the order managed by the data management unit 10b. For example, the order of print processing can be changed. The data transfer unit 10d transfers the managed image data to the image processing board 13 based on the order in which the print processing should be performed when actually performing the print processing. The display control unit 10e causes the monitor 17 to display the status managed by the data management unit 10b and the progress status of the print processing in the printer unit 12 on the same display screen. In addition, various other processing screens are displayed.

Although it means the order, it can be set appropriately. For example, one image can be one order, in the case of document data, one page or all pages (one file) can be one order, and a folder in which data (files) are stored can be one order. In the case of photographic film, one film is ordered.

The image data managed by the data management means 10b is stored in each personal computer 2 connected to the network 4.
The image data transmitted from the image data acquisition device 3 and the image data transmitted from the image data acquisition device 3.

The net folder section 11 mainly manages the image data acquisition device 3. Data receiving means 11a
Accepts the image data to be print-processed, which is transmitted from the image data acquisition device 3, on an order-by-order basis. The folder monitoring means 11b regularly monitors whether or not the data to be printed is stored in the folder in the image data acquisition device 3 connected to the network 4.

The data capturing means 11c is the photo processing apparatus 1
If there is sufficient free space to store the image data in the internal hard disk 15 (based on the function of the HD capacity monitoring means described later), the image data is acquired from the image data acquisition device 3. When the image file format of the image data taken in from the image data acquisition device 3 is not a bitmap (JPEG, TIFF, G).
These are equivalent to the second image file format, such as IF.
) Is converted into a bitmap which is the first image file format. This is because it is necessary to convert the image into a bitmap when actually printing and exposing the image on the photographic light-sensitive material.

The printer unit 12 prints and exposes an image on a photographic light-sensitive material using the image data. Therefore, the exposure engine 12a is provided. Exposure engine 12a
There are various structures such as a laser engine, a PLZT engine and a CRT engine. These are, by conveying the photographic light-sensitive material along the sub-scanning direction, by repeatedly scanning the exposure light in the main-scanning direction,
A two-dimensional image is printed on the emulsion side of a photographic light-sensitive material by printing. The photographic light-sensitive material is developed and dried, and then discharged as a photographic print to the outside of the apparatus.

The image processing board 13 performs various kinds of image processing before printing the image data. Image processing includes, for example, displaying an image on a monitor before performing print processing, determining whether or not color / density is appropriately printed, and correcting color / density as necessary. . Further, various corrections such as gradation correction may be performed according to the request of the customer. In addition, there is image processing based on a color management system.

The memory 14 is used as a temporary storage place for performing various kinds of work and processing. As will be described later in detail, the memory 14 includes at least a first memory section (memory space) and a second memory section (memory space). Only one memory 14 is required as hardware,
The configuration may be such that there are two memories and the first memory section and the second memory section are provided respectively.

The hard disk 15 is a large-capacity storage device in which image data to be printed is temporarily stored. That is, the image data received by the net order unit 10 and the net folder unit 11 and incidental data associated with the image data are stored in the hard disk 15.

The CPU 16 is a core part for performing various controls and calculations. The monitor 17 visually displays the information necessary for performing the printing process. It is possible to display the management status in the net order unit 10 and the image before the printing process described above. The keyboard 18 is an input device for inputting various data. Further, a command can be given to the photographic processing device 1.

OS (Operating System) 19
Is a basic software that directly controls hardware. As a part of its function, HD capacity monitoring means 19a is provided. It can monitor the free space of the hard disk 15. The net order unit 10 and the net folder unit 11 take in image data via the network, but since this image data is stored in the hard disk 15, it is necessary to monitor whether or not there is free space. If there is no free space, the image data is not taken in. Further, the net order unit 10 and the net folder unit 11 do not directly access the hardware. In that case, the OS 1
9 functions are used.

Next, the personal computer 2 will be described. A program called a printer driver 20 is installed in the personal computer 2. In general, when a commercially available printer is connected to the personal computer 2 to print data, the personal computer 2 needs a printer driver for the printer to be connected. The printer driver 20 in the present invention enables the photographic processing apparatus 1 to be operated in the same manner as a commercially available printer. However, since the photographic processing apparatus 1 has a function different from that of a commercially available printer, that is, a function of creating a photographic print, the photographic processing apparatus 1 is also characterized by a function required of the printer driver 20.

The data handled by the personal computer 2 is data that is taken into the personal computer 2 in response to a request from the customer, and mainly non-image data. However, even if this non-image data is sent to the photographic processing device 1 as it is, the photographic processing device 1 cannot use it to make a photographic print. Therefore, as the function of the printer driver 20,
Data conversion means 20a is provided. The data conversion unit 20a converts non-image data into bitmap image data. A configuration in which this conversion process is performed in the photo processing device 1 is also conceivable. In that case, the CPU of the photo processing apparatus 1 is burdened, and the print processing capability is reduced. Therefore, in consideration of the efficiency of print processing, it is preferable that the conversion processing into image data is performed by the printer driver 20 of each personal computer 2.

The print data setting section 20b sets the data (auxiliary data attached to the image data) necessary for printing a photograph. For example, the print size setting, the number of prints, and the like. The converted image data and the incidental data are sent together to the photographic processing apparatus 1.

Further, the printer driver 20 can acquire incidental data (including data for understanding the state of the photo processing device 1) from the photo processing device 1.
Based on the additional data, the print data setting unit 20b can set specific additional data (for example, a specific one of a plurality of print sizes is set) for print processing. That is, the printer driver 20 has a function of grasping the state of the photo processing apparatus 1, and the data transmitted from the printer driver 20 can be used as it is in the photo processing apparatus 1.

As another configuration, an input unit 21 (flexible disk drive or the like) for inputting non-image data to be printed, a hard disk, a CPU, a monitor, a keyboard and the like are provided.

The image data acquisition device 3 has an input unit 30 for inputting image data to be printed according to a customer request, and a hard disk 31 for storing the image data.
And a data processing unit 32 that collects the image data requested by the customer and its accompanying data into a single file for each order, a CPU, a monitor, a keyboard, and the like. The order file is stored in a predetermined location on the hard disk 31.

The image data acquisition device 3 does not have a function of grasping the state of the photographic processing device 1. Therefore, the data transmitted from the image data acquisition device 3 cannot always be used as it is in the photo processing device 1. This is because, for example, the print size of a photographic light-sensitive material that has not been set in the photographic processing apparatus 1 may be specified. Therefore, the net folder unit 11 described above plays a role of mediating.

<Net order screen> As described above,
The photo processing apparatus 1 can set the first and second print modes. When performing the print processing of the image data received via the network, a mode setting screen (not shown) is displayed on the monitor 17 and the second print mode is selected. FIG. 3 shows a configuration example of the display screen displayed on the monitor 17 in the second print mode.

In the message display area 40, an appropriate message according to the situation at that time is displayed. When the printing process has not started, “Please press the [Start] key to start printing” is displayed as shown in the figure. While printing your order, you may see the "reception number #
"# Is being printed" is displayed. In addition, it is preferable to display at any time how many prints have been completed out of the total number of prints for one order.

When the start key 41 is clicked, the print process is started. Data transfer means 10
Image data is sent from the hard disk 15 to the image processing board 13 by the function of d. When you press the start key,
The display "Start" switches to "Stop".
Therefore, if the key is pressed in this state, the print processing is ended. However, since the print processing is performed on an order-by-order basis, the print processing is not interrupted in the middle of an order, and the print processing for one order is waited for before ending.

The order list area 42 displays the contents of orders managed by the data management means 10b. In addition, the orders being accepted are also displayed. The orders are displayed from the beginning in the order in which they are received, and the print processing is performed in order from the beginning. The order for which the print processing is completed is deleted from the order list and excluded from management targets. Each item that constitutes the order list is displayed in FIG.

The "receipt number" indicates the number automatically assigned when the order is accepted by the net order unit 10 or the net folder unit 11. “Status” displays the status of the current order. For example, "printing"
“Print waiting” and “hold”. "Paper" indicates the width and surface quality of the paper (photosensitive material). The "number of frames" indicates the total number of frames to be processed for the order. "Size" indicates the total data size of the order. "Reception date and time" displays the date and time when the order was received. “Host” displays the host names of the personal computer 2 and the image data acquisition device 3 that requested the print processing.
The image data acquisition device 3 is displayed as CT-1.
Is the host name of. “User” displays the user name of the personal computer 2 or the image data acquisition device 3 that requested the print processing.

The order status area 43 displays the number of received orders. In addition, the free space of the hard disk 15 for receiving orders is displayed. The received image data and incidental data are stored in the hard disk 15. The image data and the incidental data saved here are deleted after the printing process is completed.

By operating each button in the order operation area 44, the order of orders to be processed can be changed. Also, you can put the order status into "pending",
You can also delete the order itself. When the order is set to hold, the print processing is not performed even if the order of the print processing comes around. The above is the function of the order changing unit 10c. Parameter display area 45
Displays the print parameters of the order currently selected in the order list. For example, the presence / absence of print processing, the presence / absence of index print creation, the presence / absence of media output (writing image data to various recording media), the feed length / width / number of photographic light-sensitive materials, the presence / absence of price sheet is displayed, etc. . These are displayed based on the incidental data transmitted together with the image data.

Further, when the details button in the parameter display area 45 is clicked, details of the order data are displayed. This is shown in FIG. Here, the file name of each image data for one order, the file size, the print size, etc. are displayed.

By clicking the function button 46, for example, the following functions can be exhibited. First, it is possible to register a net folder (described later). Also, the order acceptance history can be displayed. Items displayed as a reception history display include a host name, user name, reception date and time, print processing completion date and time, reception number, total number of prints, paper width / surface quality, total number of frames, and index print size. This allows
You can immediately check what kind of orders you have received in the past.

The print status display area 47 displays device information, order information, and processor information. As the device information, information about the paper, for example, the conveyance state of the paper and the width / surface quality / remaining capacity of the paper set in the paper magazine are displayed. As the order information, the print result of the order is displayed. For example, the host name, user name, total number of prints, print size, number of repeats (number of prints), etc. are displayed (not shown). Further, as the processor information, information such as the processing solution temperature of each development processing solution is displayed. Finish button 4
When 8 is pressed, the net order display screen is closed.

<Net Folder Registration Screen> Next, a configuration example of the net folder registration screen will be described with reference to FIG. This is for registering a folder in which an order (image data and incidental data) of the image data acquisition device 3 connected to the network 4 is stored. The net folder unit 11 of the photo processing apparatus 1 monitors the registered folders at predetermined time intervals (for example, every several seconds).
If the folder has an unprocessed order (a file in a predetermined format), the order is processed.

In FIG. 5, the net folder registration list 50 displays a list of registered net folders. There is a check box on the left side, and if it is checked, Net Folder will be enabled. That is, the Net Folders are monitored. If unchecked, the Net Folder will be disabled and the Net Folder will not be monitored. The machine name of the image data acquisition device 3 is displayed in the machine name. In the “network path”, the path of the folder in which the order of the image data acquisition device 3 is stored (storage location on the network) is displayed. In the “connection status”, the connection status between the photo processing apparatus 1 and the image data acquisition apparatus 3 is displayed. If the connection is normal, "OK: connection" is displayed.

When the registration button 51 or the correction button 52 is clicked, the net folder registration / correction screen shown in FIG. 6 is displayed, and new registration or correction of the net folder is possible. The net folder can be deleted by clicking the delete button 53. When the end button 54 is clicked, the net folder registration screen ends.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a net folder registration / correction screen. In the network path, the path of the folder in which the order of the image data acquisition device 3 is stored is input. The folder of the image data acquisition device 3 is set in the shared state in advance. For the user name, enter the login user name for browsing the folder.
Enter the login password for the password as well.
The entered information is registered by clicking the "YES: OK" button. Click the "Cancel" button to discard the entered information and return to the original screen.

<Printer Driver Display Screen> Next, the printer driver installed in the personal computer 2 will be described. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a display screen for setting various items when the print processing is requested to the photographic processing apparatus 1 using the printer driver 20.

FIG. 7 shows an example of the configuration of the display screen when the basic settings are made. The feature here is that both the paper size and the output size can be set. The data input to the personal computer 2 is originally non-image data. For example, in the case of document data, A4 specified by Japanese Industrial Standards is used.
The data is created based on the paper size generally used as the size of the document such as B4 and B5.
When printing such non-image data with a general printer, set paper of size A4, B4, B5, etc. in the printer and obtain a printed matter corresponding to the size of the created document data. You can

However, the print sizes of the photographic prints created by the photographic processing apparatus 1 include A4 and B.
There is no size of 4, B5. As print size, service size, 2L, 2E, 8 out, 6 out, 4
There are cuts and the like (these correspond to the output size) and are defined by a standard different from the paper size. Therefore, the paper size and the output size can be set independently.

A check box for setting whether or not the paper size setting is valid is provided. When the paper size setting is enabled, the conversion process is performed while maintaining the paper size when converting the non-image data to the image data. Further, when the paper size is invalidated, when the conversion process is performed, the process of matching the size of the non-image data with the output size is also performed.

Further, when the window shown in FIG. 7 is opened, incidental data (including data for understanding the state of the photo processing device 1) is acquired from the net order unit 10 of the photo processing device 1. In order to obtain this supplementary data, communication is performed between the net order unit 10 and the printer driver 20 at an appropriate timing. The set range in FIG. 7 is also determined based on this additional data. For example, the range that can be set in the output size is determined by the paper magazine (size of photographic photosensitive material, etc.) set in the photographic processing device associated with the printer driver. Further, it is possible to know the remaining length of the photographic light-sensitive material contained in the paper magazine. In the case of the photo processing apparatus 1 in which two paper magazines can be mounted, the status of each paper magazine is displayed.

In addition, the orientation of printing, the number of copies (the number of prints), and the presence or absence of register marks can be set.

<Processing procedure from print acceptance to printing completion><< In case of personal computer >> Next, the procedure from print acceptance to printing completion will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

It is assumed that a customer has requested that document data (non-image data) created by word processing software be output as a photographic print. The operator of the photo shop sets a recording medium such as a flexible disk received from the customer in the input unit 21 of the personal computer 2,
Import data (# 1). Next, the non-image data file is opened using application software capable of handling the data (# 2). Then, when “print” is selected from the menu, a display screen as shown in FIG. 7 appears. While viewing this screen, various print data settings are made (# 3). When the setting is completed, click the OK button (# 4). The non-image data is converted into bitmap image data (# 5).
Then, the image data and the incidental data (various print data) are transmitted to the photographic processing apparatus 1 as information for one order (# 6). If the non-image data covers several pages, one page is one image. When transmitting data, the image data for n sheets is transmitted first, and the supplementary data is transmitted last. Since the supplementary data has been sent, it can be seen that there is a break in the order.

In the photo processing apparatus 1, it is monitored whether or not there is a free space in the hard disk for receiving the image data (# 7). If there is no free space,
Since image data cannot be stored, in that case, retry is performed after a predetermined time has elapsed. And hard disk 1
If there is a free space in 5, the data of the order is accepted, and the image data and the incidental data are stored in the hard disk 15 (# 8).

As another embodiment, the auxiliary data is included in the free space information of the hard disk 15 and transmitted to the printer driver 20, and step # 7 is checked before the transmission. You may.

The received orders are managed by the net order unit 10. Then, it is determined whether or not the print processing order of the order has come (# 9). When the print processing comes, the image data is transferred to the image processing board 13 (# 10). Then, image processing is executed (# 11), and print processing is performed by the printer unit 12 (# 12). The progress of the printing process is shown in the print status display area 47 of the net order screen described with reference to FIG.
Is displayed in. When the printing process is completed, the photographic prints are discharged to the outside of the apparatus and accumulated in the sorter in order units. On the other hand, when the printing process is completed, the order is deleted from the order list (# 13), and the image data and the incidental data stored in the hard disk 15 are also deleted (# 14). Note that the timing of deletion may not be immediately after the print processing is completed. For example, it may be stored for a while in preparation for the reprinting process.

<< In case of image data acquisition device >> Next,
A procedure for performing print processing using the image data acquired by the image data acquisition device 3 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, the recording medium in which the image data received from the customer is stored is set in the input unit 30 and the image data is taken in (# 20). Even if there are a plurality of image data, data processing for handling as one order is performed (# 21). At this time, incidental data necessary for print processing is also set. The data for one order is stored in a predetermined folder of the hard disk 31 of the image data acquisition device 3 as one order file. This data will be transmitted based on the access from the photo processing apparatus 1.

Next, the procedure for taking in the data of the image data obtaining device 3 by the photographic processing device 1 and performing the printing process will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 10 and the fetch timing diagram of FIG. First, the net folder unit 11 determines whether the folder monitoring timing has come (# 30). When the monitoring timing comes, it is determined whether or not there is free space on the hard disk 15 (#
31). If there is no free space, check again at the next monitoring timing. If there is free space, go to the folders registered in the net folder. It is determined whether or not the data to be processed is stored in the folder (# 32). If there is no data, the process returns to step # 30. If multiple net folders are registered, the presence / absence of data is checked for all folders.
Note that step # 30 and step # 31 may be interchanged.

If the data exists, the image data and the incidental data are fetched from the folder (# 33). It is determined whether the image file format of the image data captured by the net folder unit 11 is bitmap (# 3).
4). If it is a bitmap, the process proceeds to step # 38 and the image data is stored in the hard disk 15. If it is not a bitmap, it is temporarily stored in the first memory unit (#
35). Then, the image file format of this image data is converted into a bitmap by the function of the image data conversion means 11d (# 36). The second memory unit is used as a work area for this conversion process, and the image data after the conversion process is temporarily stored in this second memory unit (# 37). Then, the image data converted into the bitmap is stored in the hard disk 15 (# 38). The subsequent processing procedure is performed in the same manner as in the case of FIG. As described above, since the captured image data is stored in the memory 14 instead of the hard disk 15, the time required for access can be considerably shortened. Further, since the bitmap image data is directly stored in the hard disk 15, the processing time can be shortened in this respect as well.

The timing of the above image conversion processing will be described with reference to FIG. It is assumed that there are N images of one order to be captured (not a bitmap).
First, the image data of the first sheet is taken into the first memory unit in the memory 14 as shown in FIG. Then, a conversion process to a bitmap is performed (shown by image 1 ').
It is stored in the second memory section in the memory 14. In parallel with this, the image 2 to be processed next is captured. After that,
It is processed in the same way. In this way, the first
Since the second memory unit is used, the next image data can be taken in parallel with the image conversion process. For example, if there is only the memory space corresponding to the first memory unit, the next image 2 cannot be captured until the process of converting the image 1 into the image 1 ′ is completed.

Therefore, according to the configuration of the present invention, the processing time for image data can be greatly reduced. This can greatly improve the processing capability of the photographic processing device (eg, this is represented by the number of prints per hour). Note that the supplementary data (data necessary for print processing) is fetched at the end after fetching the Nth image data, whereby the fetching of one order of data is completed.

<Other Embodiments> The structure of the photographic processing apparatus is not limited to that of this embodiment, and various structures can be adopted. For example, the functions of the scanner device 5 may be incorporated inside the main body of the photo processing device, not separately from the main body. Further, it may be a photographic processing device in which the image processing unit (image processor) and the printer unit are separate bodies.

In this embodiment, the personal computer 2 handles only non-image data, but it goes without saying that it may handle image data. In this case, the personal computer functions as an image data acquisition device. In this case, the printer driver needs to have a function of converting an image file format other than bitmap into a bitmap. Network 4 is connected by wire, but this is wireless LA
You may comprise by N. Wired and wireless may be combined. The non-image data acquired by the personal computer 2 may be created using the personal computer 2. When the network 4 is connected to the Internet, it may be acquired (downloaded) via the Internet.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of a photographic print creation system.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a functional block configuration of a system.

[Fig. 3] Configuration example of the net order display screen

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a configuration example of an order data detail screen.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a net folder registration screen.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a net folder registration / correction screen.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a display screen by a printer driver.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the procedure from print acceptance to print processing (for non-image data).

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a procedure when image data is acquired by the image data acquisition device.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the procedure from print acceptance to print processing (for image data).

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a timing of capturing image data.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Photo processor 2 PC 3 Image data acquisition device 4 network 10 Net Order Department 10a Data reception means 10b Data management means 10c Order change means 10d Data transfer means 10e Display control means 11 Net folder section 11b Folder monitoring means 11c Data acquisition means 11d image data converter 12 Printer section 13 Image processing board 15 hard disk 19a HD capacity monitoring means 20 Printer driver 20a data conversion means 20b Print data setting means

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A photographic processing device for producing a photographic print by printing an image on a photographic light-sensitive material using image data of a first image file format, and image data of various image file formats from a recording medium. An image data acquisition device for acquiring the image data, a photo print creation system in which the photo processing device and the image data acquisition device are connected by a network or the like, and a data acquisition for capturing the image data stored in the image data acquisition device. Means, a memory for temporarily storing the captured image data in the second image file format, and an image data conversion for converting the image data in the memory into the first image file format Means and a hard disk for storing the image data converted into the first image file format, and performing the printing process. A photographic print creation system characterized in that, when performing, the image data of the first image file format is read from the hard disk. 2. A photographic processing device used in the photographic print creating system according to claim 1, wherein the image data acquisition device stores the image data stored in the image data acquisition device, and the captured image data A memory for temporarily storing the image data in the case of the second image file format, an image data conversion unit for converting the image data in the memory into the first image file format, and the first image file A photographic processing apparatus comprising a hard disk for storing image data converted into a format, and configured to read image data of a first image file format from the hard disk when performing print processing. . 3. The photographic processing device according to claim 2, wherein the first image file format is a bitmap.